C/O Thibault Penin
Young women are disproportionately ridiculed for their popular interests
Time and time again, we’ve heard the word “basic” being used to describe popular trends in mainstream media. Everything from Starbucks Frappuccinos to UGGs to One Direction has at least once fallen under the umbrella of being “basic.” Designating popular trends as basic has extended to an unwanted label on those who consume them.
It’s no surprise that the label of being basic falls largely on what is liked by women. I consider 2016 as the golden era of what was and is still considered to be basic. As an eighth grader at the time, I completely remember the satisfaction of buying that one dark green fall jacket with the gold buttons that everyone around me seemed to wear.
To me, buying that jacket was nothing short of an achievement as its popularity at the time truly cannot be described. Imagine my surprise when that jacket was lumped into the multitude of trends that were designated as “embarrassing” to participate in.
This notion of being undervalued as young women, especially in the context of following the status quo, wasn’t isolated to small-level interactions. Throughout history, musicians have lamented against being known as artists liked by crowds of young women.
5 Seconds of Summer is a band that rose to popularity around the same time that One Direction did. In fact, they joined the latter on multiple tours and consequently gained a fanbase that largely resembled that of One Direction’s. However, in 2014, they expressed that their credibility as a “real band” was hindered by being known as a band that was “just for girls” and revelled in the fact that they had started to gain more male fans.
It’s incredibly troubling to note that the impact of being labelled as basic has led to a perceived decline in credibility of anything with a female-majority fanbase.
While the “basic” label may have peaked in popularity in the 2010s, many other labels have come and gone that seem to only have the purpose of ridiculing women. As a reaction to the “basic” title, internalized misogyny began to manifest in the minds of many young women. Suddenly, the scales tipped in the other direction and being “not like other girls” was highly valued. The only way to gain any sort of unique identity was straying away from what we all loved just months ago.
Eventually, the story repeated itself and the label “not like other girls” began its turn in the cycle of ridiculing what girls choose to like. On TikTok, a social media platform that recently gained popularity in 2020, videos posted under #notlikeothergirls have over 85 million views with the majority of them mocking “alternative” trends enjoyed by young women.
If it seems as if you can’t enjoy anything without some form of backlash, then you’re not far off from reality. It’s time for us to make the active decision to focus on all the benefits that come from adoring the same songs, clothing and movies as the majority.
I’m proud to admit that nearly everything I like could be considered basic. Perhaps the most basic of all is my adoration of Taylor Swift’s discography. However, it’s also gratifying to have so many interests that others can relate to when you freely accept the value of being basic.
Why wouldn’t you choose to enjoy the fact that your favourite song is also at the top of the charts in the world right now? What’s the true disadvantage of being able to see yourself in women around the world? On the other hand, if you choose to let the criticism in and affect every aspect of your life, you only compromise your own happiness.
The unfortunate observation from the persistent mockery of both being like and unlike other women has cemented the fact that we gain nothing from trying to please others. We shouldn’t view this observation as a battle we “can’t win,” but rather a battle that doesn’t need to be fought.
Immediate disdain of an entire demographic for their interests isn’t a reflection of your shortcomings, but of those who choose to make such blanket statements.
By: Saadia Shahid
How does a student get good grades? I know the most obvious answer being shouted out is “by studying, of course,” with some sarcastic replies of “watching Netflix” thrown in the mix. But what if I told you both those answers were correct?
A balance of socializing and studying, which can include watching Netflix, is necessary to achieve those highly sought-after grades.
Though our cognitive needs are met by virtue of being university students, it is our need for "love and belongingness" that is present on Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Socializing is a basic human need. To become functioning members of the society, we must engage in leisure activities.
Yet, we almost never put time aside to socialize with our friends. Even when we do, studying takes precedence and ends up taking over the time we allocated for socializing.
This is often a result of procrastination. Whether it is procrastinating by scrolling through clickbait articles or watching videos, when we procrastinate, we take away time from both socializing and studying.
Procrastination is also looked down upon so badly. Rarely do we try to understand why the person might be engaging in procrastination. Procrastination is a sign of anxiety.
In my opinion, procrastination is often a hugely unrecognized sign, too. Besides anxiety, procrastinating habits have been linked to depression and low self-esteem.
If you find your friend procrastinating, don’t “leave them alone so they can study”. Study with them. If left alone, they may continue procrastinating for even longer, and worsen their mental health.
Some people do emphasize their preference for studying alone. In that case, make sure they’re okay and continually check on their progress and their mental health. In severe cases of anxiety, they may even lie about it.
As a perfectionist, I speak from experience. My habit of procrastination stemmed from being anxious about the imperfect outcome that might ensue. As a result, I took longer getting started on assignments with the thought that if I didn’t do well, I could justify it by telling myself that I didn’t have enough time.
So far this year, I have been doing better as I have come to terms with the non-existent nature of perfection. This is something creatives struggle with as well. Things like “is this good enough?”, “should I post this now?” and “I want to make this better” are examples of what goes through their minds on a regular basis.
So how do you achieve the grade you’ve been aiming for? Consistency is the answer. Being consistently diligent with your workflow will not just aid in improving your skills, but also get you your coveted grade. Doing well in a course is a long-term goal, and definitely doesn’t occur when you start an assignment a day before its due.
Procrastination also leads to long hours of isolation in the library behind laptop screens or a stack of books, taking away the satisfaction of “love and belongingness”, and according to Maslow, halting an individual’s growth.
So, the next time you find your friend procrastinating, ask them why, take them out to get them relaxed and help them get started on their studying. Mental health is no light issue.
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Normally I would refrain from doing this, but the prevalence of “basic” in our day-to-day language is approaching other hall-of-famers like YOLO and #-insert random word-. Yet somehow the definition of “basic” is still very vague. According to urban dictionary, “basic bitch” is defined as “a bum-a$$ woman who think she the shit but really ain’t."
Setting aside the inappropriate use of the b-word (a serious discussion for another day), it sure sounds like being basic is not a good thing. Grabbing a quick extra-whip low-fat pumpkin spice latte? You basic. Making yourself a kale smoothie after Zumba class? You basic. But the truth is, everyone’s a little basic. The more important truth is that it’s no big deal if you are.
I’m pretty basic. On the tenth anniversary of the release of Mean Girls, I hosted a viewing party at my house, complete with sushi and copious glasses of Girls’ Night Out. It was also a ridiculously good time, so why not just shake off the haters? Because we all know the haters gonna hate hate hate.
Being basic is considered a bad thing in that it implies you lack agency. You will follow trends as they come, with not one original thought ever crossing your mind. That’s simply not true though. Remember that time you came up with the idea to deep-fry Oreos in a Nutella batter? How about that time you wrote a paper about Descartes’ ethics as a hopeful interpretation of human nature? That ain’t basic. Just because you follow trends doesn’t mean you are an unoriginal person as a whole. Not many people are invested enough in everything to go their own way all the time.
One of the reasons I don’t mind being basic is because I appreciate a basic’s honesty. Basics are unafraid of accepting the notion that they are not wholly creative in their outer appearance. Basics are predictable. By acknowledging the inherent stupidity of things like celebrity gossip and Pawn Stars, basics make it feel okay to occasionally indulge yourself in these pointless fun pastimes.
And if you really think about it, calling someone basic as an insult doesn’t really criticize them for their lack of originality. The term is thrown around so much and is so widely applicable that it’s hard to take seriously. Instead, calling someone out for being basic is just pointing out a common consumption pattern, and somehow asserting that it’s worse than subscribing to a less popular one (I’m looking at you, music snobs). It’s a really restrained way of proving your superiority over others, one that is buried in sarcasm and laced with just the right amount of sass. It also makes you a dick, but hey – what do I know? I’m just a basic guy who loveeeeees brunch.
